Number 39 - American Nyckelharpa Association

N UMBER 39
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www.nyckelharpa.org
Inside:
The Nyckelharpa & Me
by Vicki Swan / www.smallpiper.co.uk
A
what?” is the usual
exclamation when
I try to explain to
people the new instrument that I’ve just taken
up! I’ve now printed up a
large sign to hold up and
show them, I find it helps
a lot! I’m sure that this
is the same for all nyckelharpa players outside of
Scandinavia!
I’m a double bass
player by trade, studying
at music college, but I’m
a born again folkie who
plays the Scottish smallpipes and flute in a duo.
I’m also half Swedish—
on my mothers side.
I’d been contemplating
taking up a new instrument for about eighteen months
before finally picking up my brand new nyckelharpa from
Olle Plahn. I wanted to add a musical something to the duo
that I could sing and play at the same time—technically you
can with the bass, but it’s too big and we don’t use it in the
duo. And yes, the Scottish smallpipes are bellows pipes so
I could sing and play with them, but somehow I just never
felt inclined to sing against the pipes. When I discovered
that my gammal mormor (maternal great grandmother)
played the box zither—looks very much like the precursor to the autoharp—I felt a wave of disappointment. Why
couldn’t she have played something fantastically cool like the
Buskspel in Oregon . . . . . . . . . . .3
This thing called a nyckelharpa . . . 4
Spela Bättre! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6
Byss-Kalle polska #25 . . . . . . . . . .8
Markus Svensson interview . . . . .9
Polska efter Grodd-Olle . . . . . . . 11
Puma’s 50th! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12
Ransäter & Österby. . . . . . 14 & 15
Building competition . . . . . . . . .16
nyckelharpa? At around the same time,
I was looking online for some words to
a Swedish song I was translating and
discovered a video of Ranarim. I was
totally blown away by the nyckelharpa
and knew at that point that it was the
instrument that I wanted to learn to
play. It didn’t matter that gammal mormor hadn’t played it!
I did some intensive internet
research and spoke to a couple of musical colleagues who I discovered played
the instrument—although hadn’t seen
them play. Contacted a maker to find
out costs and time scales. I wasn’t sure
if it was a bonus being able to speak
Swedish as I wasn’t always that good at working out the
answers I was getting back. I keep my Swedish somewhat
current by reading Harry Potter, but words like cauldron
and magic wand don’t come up very often in everyday conversation! In the end, I decided that I would wait for the
very folkie traditional amount of time—a year and a day—to
make sure that I really, really wanted to play the nyckelharpa
and spend all my savings! I only lasted around five months
before succumbing and sending an e-mail to Olle saying,
“Yes, please make me a nyckelharpa.”
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NYCKEL NOTES
I’d just
finished my
Masters degree
where my dissertation title
was, “An investigation into
the teaching
and learning
of the Scottish
smallpipes online
using podcasting
as a distribution medium.”
Most people
glaze over
when I start
to talk about
it. Essentially
I researched
the teaching
methods of the
Highland and
Scottish smallpipes, wrote my own tutor book, recorded it and podcast it
to learners all over the world. The Scottish smallpipes aren’t
a common instrument and living in the south of England,
I’ve never had much contact with other players. So, I’ve had
plenty of experience being a lone piper in a sea of English
melodeons. My goal was to give people the experience of
being able to learn an instrument even if they couldn’t find a
local teacher.
With this behind me, one of the things that was really
exciting was that I had placed myself in this position of
being the remote learner, where I had never seen a real
live performer or had a go on the instrument before taking
possession of it. The day I picked up my brand new nyckelharpa—combined with a visit to see my sister and weekend
in the mountains skiing—was as scary as it was exciting.
The instrument was handed over to me and I held it in
my arms, made some random scraping noises and felt very
embarrassed that this new instrument was being entrusted
to a person who had, in fact, never even held one let alone
play anything on it. After we left, I sheepishly asked my
sister if she could remember how the sympathetic strings
were tuned. “No,” was her reply. I just nodded my head in
agreement. The northern dialect had defeated our limited
vocabulary of smålänska.
Getting the nyckelharpa home proved easier than I had
feared. I had all my Musicians Union paperwork with me,
but as we were flying with an economy airline, I’d actually
booked a seat for “Mr. Nyckelharpa Instrument.” I suppose
Swedes are used to the instrument and didn’t bat an eyelid,
even helpfully strapping it into the window side seat. I have
no idea how we’re going to get all my instruments onboard
next time we have to fly.
Back at home, the arrival of Peter Hedlund’s teaching
DVD was most welcome. I was able to finally remember
the tuning of the sympathetic strings and start holding the
2
strap correctly. I
am now totally
hooked on playing this fantastic
instrument and
am practising too
much ... well,
not too much for
the instrument,
but my pipes and
flute are starting
to get grumpy at
being neglected.
The first time
I took out my
double bass bow,
having solely
played with a
nyckelharpa bow
for three months,
was scary. I felt
like I’d never
seen such a huge
and heavy bow
before. Being a double bass player had made me very aware
that having a good bow is very important, so I began the
search for a new bow. Again, I Googled. Again, I found the
ANA’s website to be really helpful and between Rita Leydon
and Peter I chose a bow by Otto Damgren. He sent me
the bow to try out first, saying it would be the best bow
ever and to pay him later. It was very, very different from
the bow that came with my instrument, very responsive
and bouncy. It’s taking a while to be able to keep it under
control, but it is getting there! Suddenly, double stopping
is possible. This was a complete revelation and showed me
again just how important the choice of bow is.
Things are settling down now. I’m practising as hard as
I can. I’m able to sing and mostly find the right notes. I still
suffer from ‘beginner shaky bow’ if I know there are fiddlers
listening, but it would feel odd not to pack the nyckelharpa
along with all my other instruments into the campervan
now. I know it’s a long journey, and even though I’ve only
been playing for four months, I’m pretty much ready for
volume two of Peter’s instructional DVD—although the
final two tunes on volume one are incredibly hard and won’t
be ready for anyone else’s ears for a long time. I’m under no
illusions that I could even begin to call myself a nyckelharpa
player, but it feels like I’ve known this instrument my whole
life and it’s just been waiting for me. I’ve had an amazing
time being a beginner again, although once you’re a musician, I don’t think you can ever go back to the completely
innocent stage of being a total beginner. Once music is in
you, it’s always there no matter what medium you use to
‘realize’ it. It has helped me to appreciate what my smallpipe
students have all gone through and what an amazing adventure it is to take up a new and exciting instrument when
your nearest teacher is several countries away and teaching
you through a computer screen. ■
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NYCKEL NOTES
3
Buskspel
in Oregon
by Trella Hastings
T
he second annual
Nyckelharpa Buskspel
Stämma was held over
the weekend of June 30–July
1, 2007, in the beautiful
Columbia River Gorge, east
of Portland, Oregon. It was
again hosted by Marilee
and Michael Cowan at their
lovely home in the woods.
This event was started by
them last year and is now
considered to be annual.
Musicians came from as far
away as Vancouver, B.C.
and Port Townsend, WA.
We were a small group of
ten, including our gracious
hosts. The Cowans’ home
is located between Hood
River and The Dalles. On
Saturday, when everyone
was there together, we had
jamming and tune sharing.
Attending were Michael and
Marilee Cowan (hosts), Brian
and Nola Nelson, Trella Hastings, Dave Mullens, Virginia
Thompson, Stewart Pugh, Lynn and Gunnar Erickson. We
did most of our playing on the deck attached to the back
of the house. Some of the tunes shared over the weekend
included Kruthandlar’ns vals
vals, taught by Brian; Sömnig
(Sleepy), Elin’s Waltz, Marilee’s 60th Birthday, and Cricket
Schottis taught
by Marilee; and
Langs Stordalselven
taught by Gunnar.
There were probably a couple of
others as well. We
saw a deer meander nearby at one
time. There is a
selection of wildlife
living out there,
including a few
bears and even an
occasional cougar, which thankfully, we did not encounter!
Playing nyckelharpa wasn’t the only activity—there was
a lively game of croquet, hot tub soaking, a hike to a viewpoint overlooking the Columbia River, a wild bicycle ride by
the guys, a great game of peace solitaire in the evening, and
group picture taking up the hill at an old barn nearby.
It was such a wonderful, relaxing weekend, also fun
and funky, but then, the Cowans are perfect hosts. There
was more tune sharing on Sunday as well. There are several
spare rooms to accommodate guests, including a trailer and
plenty of space to pitch tents, although nobody choose to
camp this time. If you’ve been thinking about a trip to the
Northwest, maybe you could time it for our next Buskspel
in 2008. We’d love to have you! ■
LEFT :
The hostess shows off her green thumb ... and the editor is
full of admiration.
ABOVE : An old barn provides wonderful ambiance for some
alfresco music.
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NYCKEL NOTES
4
This Thing Called a Nyckelharpa
This article requires a bit of background as it was not written
for Nyckel Notes. It was written for Black Night
Night, which is a
publication for the Renaissance band “Blackmore’s Night.”
Ritchie Blackmore, guitarist of Blackmore’s Night, is apparently also a nyckelharpa player and has decided to make use of
the nyckelharpa on his next album. I was asked by Jim Kerney,
the editor, to write a gentle and general introduction to this
strange new instrument for the band’s fans who otherwise
might be left in the dark about this all of a sudden changeup. Being a bit in the dark myself about who this Ritchie
Blackmore person might be, I wrote to Puma and asked. He set
me straight without a moment’s hesitation: “Ever hear of Deep
Purple? One of the the most famous rock groups in the whole
wide world ... Ritchie Blackmore was part of that group ... a
world famous musician in other words!” So there you have it.
by Rita Leydon ©2007
I
’ve been on intimate terms with the nyckelharpa for
maybe a decade now. This was by no means part of
the Grand Plan—but the grand plan had more or less
imploded already and I was fully engaged in the creative
endeavor of rebuilding a new version of home and hearth
with my husband, Chris, who was nice enough to give “us”
another chance. During that time we were heavily addicted
to Swedish dancing and at one of our weekly dance sessions, Serendipity played her card by introducing us to the
most amazing instrument we had ever seen or heard—it
was a nyckelharpa in the able hands of a guest fiddler from
Sweden. It was a time of new beginnings for us and, on
a pure spur of the moment whim, Chris up and ordered
himself one of those fandangled nyckelharpa contraptions.
Whoa! Was I ever stunned! Chris’ instrument arrived as a
big brown package from Sweden several weeks later and
I swear the thing was imbued with the beguiling spirit of
Lorelei herself, calling out to me, a siren luring me away
from whatever else I should be doing, enchanting me to
come hither and pick it up, enticing me to stroke the keys
and explore yet hidden mysteries. Chris was soon on to me
however and, in no uncertain terms, made it perfectly clear
that I was more than welcome to move back into his life,
share his bed once again and spend his money, but his beautiful brand spanking new nyckelharpa was off limits! Gee willikers. So touchy! So I bought my own.
So there we were, two people without a clue how to
play, much less tune or even how to hold a nyckelharpa.
Ever so gradually we connected the first few precious dots
of this new adventure and soon became totally hooked and
besotted, struggling along together, each thankful for the
other’s insights. We observed that we learned differently. We
became fascinated by the workings of brain versus muscle
memory, noticing that there were times when the brain
needed to pay attention and hold on to the wheel and there
were other times when the (left) finger-hand and the (right)
bow-hand functioned best on some sort of half conscious
autopilot. We had a wonderfully challenging, often frustrating time learning tunes and playing together in the evenings,
amazed and astonished when we actually made music. Keep
in mind, this was music for home consumption. This was
part of our healing. By and by we ventured out and shared
the instrument and ourselves with others. We played for our
dancing friends. We played for strangers. We played for our
grown children who didn’t quite know what to make of this
new version of mom and dad. We taught others to play. We
became downright infectious as our enthusiasm spilled out
in exuberant splashes wherever we went with our nyckelharpas. This was serious fun!
Ooops. Sorry. I’ve rudely assumed that the reader
knows what a nyckelharpa is, when in all probability you
haven’t the foggiest notion. For starters, “nyckel” is the
Swedish word for key, like a house key, and “harpa” is a
stringed instrument. An English translation might be “key
fiddle,” but in practice, everyone who plays nyckelharpa the
world over simply calls it by its Swedish name and that’s
that. The nyckelharpa is a bowed instrument, peculiar to and
existing only in Sweden. Its earliest beginnings predate the
violin by at least four hundred years give or take a century.
There are no exact dates. We can only interpret physical
findings and architectural remnants and such. The instrument’s earliest depiction is a stone relief, part of a church
portico, of an angel playing nyckelharpa. It is located on the
island of Gotland in the Baltic Sea and dated 1350, suggesting that the instrument had probably been around a good
while already by then. There are numerous paintings on
church walls and ceilings in Sweden of angels playing nyckelharpa. The oldest actual instrument is dated 1526 and was
found in Mora, in Dalecarlia, Sweden. It is a simpler version
of the one commonly played today. Early instruments have
also been found in Norway and Finland, but only in Sweden
do we encounter a living tradition of this instrument and its
music, and ground zero of that tradition is in Uppland, the
province just north of Stockholm. Today, Uppland, much to
its surprise, has become a place of pilgrimage for a multitude
of enthusiasts from beyond Sweden’s borders. This is a new
phenomenon. The world is discovering the nyckelharpa.
The instrument has evolved through various permutations as musical fashions and needs have changed with the
ebb and flow of the times. The first stirrings of today’s
modern chromatic nyckelharpa go back to the 1920s and
the work of August Bohlin. Bohlin’s work was expanded
upon in the 30s by Eric Sahlström whose name is synonymous with all things nyckelharpa. Eric pretty much single
handedly saved the instrument from certain extinction in
the mid 1900s by sharing and making available everything
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NYCKEL NOTES
he knew about building and playing. Today, Eric Sahlström
(1912–1986) is justly revered almost like a patron saint. He
was a brilliantly gifted player as well as a natural composer.
He also built instruments and taught others to build their
own instruments, and after they had built their instruments,
he taught them to play.
So what does one of these nyckelharpas look like? Well,
it is basically a violin type sound box with a very broad neck
which accommodates sixteen strings—four playing strings,
A-C-G-C, and twelve resonance strings. On one side of the
neck are thirty-seven (give or take) wooden keys arranged in
three rows which correspond to the three middle octaves of
the piano. The instrument hangs around the player’s neck
horizontally similar to a guitar and is played with a short
bow. (For detailed
info please google
on the web and
you will find tons
of material to take
you as deep as
you care to go.
The American
Nyckelharpa
Association, www.
nyckelharpa.org
is a good place to
start.)
I am Swedish
by birth, transplanted to the
US at the tender
age of ten. The
nyckelharpa is my
personal means
of reconnecting
with my roots and
discovering who I
am. Most players
I meet in the US
have no similar
Swedish connection, they just love the sound of the instrument. Many even
go to the trouble of learning Swedish! The best part of any
journey is the people you meet along the way and I’ve been
extremely blessed in that department—on both sides of the
Atlantic. Harpa players are spread pretty thin in the US, so it
is always a celebration when we have a chance to get together. There are occasional workshops during the calendar year
and the diehards try to make it to these. Some make the
trek to Sweden—often more than once. It is very difficult
to teach yourself such an oddball instrument in isolation.
Luckily there are lots of sources of inspiration and help available to folks these days and the web is a godsend.
Truth is that I’m not really a musician at all, I’m a visual
artist, a designer, dabbling in something that gives me great
pleasure. I play for the joy of it but don’t expect anyone
else to particularly enjoy my playing ... in other words, I
know my place on the musical ladder. No pretenses. No illusions. I am happy. My nyckelharpa beckons me several times
5
every day without fail and I have to drop what I am doing
and pick it up. Play a tune. Play another, and another. It is
so very easy to get lost in the playing. I travel to Sweden
in the summer, instrument in tow, seeking my musical fix:
partake of festivals and workshops, listen to those who can
really play. It is important to listen to good players. On
CDs, the nyckelharpa is often part of a larger sound among
Swedish groups and you can’t really clearly hear the voice
of the instrument. To really hear the nyckelharpa, listen to
the recordings of the legendary Peter Puma Hedlund. You’ll
thank me.
One thing has led to another as is usually the case, and
I have gotten all involved in making films and DVDs plus
producing some CDs with my friend Peter—the same Peter
mentioned in the
previous paragraph— arguably
Sweden’s finest
solo artist on
the instrument.
Together we have
produced a three
volume instructional DVD series
on how to play
nyckelharpa.
Peter is in front
of the camera
and I’m behind
it. This effort is
making it possible for people
anywhere in the
world to learn
how to play even
though they have
no access to a
“live” teacher. It
is very gratifying
to have contact,
via the internet,
with persons in distant corners of our planet who are discovering the nyckelharpa and making it their own. I have also
made a film documenting the building of a nyckelharpa by
one of the top builders, Sören Åhker, and translated a book
Sören wrote on the same subject. These two items together
are a tremendous resource for anyone desiring to build their
own instrument. Recently a man in Russia purchased the
building book and DVD, so soon there will be, perhaps
the very first, a nyckelharpa player in Russia. Russia, Japan,
Mexico, all of Europe, Australia, Canada, Hawaii, India, the
US ... the nyckelharpa is spreading all over the globe, one
enthusiast at a time. I can hardly wait to see what all these
diverse peoples will do with their instruments, what sort of
music they will make once they get beyond mastering the
fundamentals and fan out into their own cultural landscapes.
The nyckelharpa is not only in Uppland any more! ■
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NYCKEL NOTES
SPELA BÄTTRE!
Listening to Yourself
Listenin
bby Matt Fichtenbaum
I
recently had occasion to record a tune for someone. The
person in question plays quite well, and I wanted to play
the tune in a manner worthy of him. After playing a while
to warm up, I started the recorder, played some more to forget that the recorder was running, and performed the tune.
Then I listened to the recording.
What I heard was not without merit. But it also held its
share of surprises, and that led to (a) a lot more practicing,
(b) a much better final result, and (c) this column. I discuss
my own adventures below, but let’s first consider what it
means to listen to a performance—what the factors are that
make one rendition different from another, what the dimensions are for comparing one’s own playing with that of a role
model.
The dimensions
There’s rhythm and timing. Much of what we play is
dance music, so this is a good place to start. Is the tempo a
good one, and does it refrain from varying or speeding up
during the tune? Do the notes come when they should, or
are some a little late, others a little early? Does the playing
sound “in control,” or is there a sense of “always running to
catch up?” Is there a “groove”—a pleasing, rhythmic feeling
that makes you want to move along with it?
There’s tone. Are the notes strong, clear, smooth, or
do they sound thin or scratchy, or damped and strangled?
Does the instrument speak with a full, solid voice, or do the
strings barely move?
There’s articulation. How do the notes start and end?
I believe the characteristic “Swedish sound” has notes that
begin sharply and emphatically, which are then sustained
lightly so that the instrument is free to sing. Some players
have a more “classical” tone, that starts gently and swells to
its sustained intensity before trailing off.
There’s coordination. The way the left hand works
together with the bow. Do the fingers arrive at and leave the
keys at the right time, or are there accidental grace notes at
the start, or buzzing as the tangents meet or depart from a
moving string? When two notes are slurred on the same bow
stroke, is the change from one to the other clean, and does
it happen when you want it to? Are string crossings—slurs
from one string to another—smooth and well-defined?
Listening critically
Now, if you’re not accustomed to thinking in these
terms, choose a few of your favorite nyckelharpa recordings,
listen to them, and try to identify and describe what it is
about them that makes them interesting or exciting to you.
6
Maybe it’s a rhythmic groove, or a clean, silvery tone, or
some emotion—joy, affection, sheer energy—that the player
expresses in a way you can hear.
Why do this?
It’s essential that you listen for specifics, because you’re
going to work on specifics to improve your playing. Once
you know the notes of a tune and can play it at a reasonable tempo, what remains on the path to perfection is (1)
all the technical details of playing well, and (2) any personal
expression you choose to add. You can only improve if you
can identify what needs improvement, and you can only add
content to your music if you are aware of the possibilities.
It’s a lot of work, but there’s only one person who really
cares how well you play, and that’s you. So it follows that it’s
also you who do the work involved.
I’d had this column in mind for a month or so, and
then I met Markus Svensson at the Nordic Fiddles and Feet
summer course week (see article on page 9 in this issue).
Markus teaches music, primarily to adults. His students
spend a fair amount of time listening to recordings and
identifying and discussing what they hear, what characterizes a player’s style and makes the music interesting. That’s
another endorsement for the value of this approach.
Get to work!
First, get yourself a recorder of suitable quality.
Something that can render music in a way that makes listening pleasant. A good cassette deck, devoid of wavery sound
and distortion. A mini-disc recorder or a recording mp3
player. A computer with a microphone plugged into its
sound card.
Next, choose a tune to work on, one you already know
and play reasonably well. It’s a plus if you have a recording
of this tune by a good player: you can compare his (her)
playing and yours, and work on hearing the differences and
then doing something about them.
Then just play for a while, to warm up yourself and
your instrument and to get over any “I’m about to record
myself” jitters. It doesn’t matter what you play, just so you
have fun with it and get yourself into a good mood.
Set the recorder going. Start playing. If anxiety derails
you, stop, breathe, and start over. Don’t worry about the
recorder. When you get a good take—it doesn’t have to be
perfect, you’re not making a CD (yet)—stop the recorder,
put your harpa down, take a deep breath, and go get something to drink.
A few words of counsel. Nyckelharpas sound different
from the front and the back. They sound different close up
and from farther away. And the human mind has remarkable powers for on-the-fly correction: weak notes, notes with
the corners missing, and errors in timing just don’t register
while you’re playing.
It is almost time to listen to what you just recorded. But
first, let me tell you what I learned when I undertook this
adventure.
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NYCKEL NOTES
Surprise!
In the cold gray sound of day, I heard
• Uncertain notes, as a finger missed a key or got there
not quite in time.
• Notes cut short, as a finger, so eager to get to the
next key, left a key while its note was still sounding.
• Timing that, in spots, sounded as though I were concerned about keeping up, even though I should have
had plenty of time to play in steady rhythm.
• Flabby, unconvincing bow strokes that began weakly
or limply.
That’s not to say that the entire rendition failed. But it
certainly had its bad moments. It was clear that some work
was needed.
The way forward
I chose to focus on one problem area at a time, and
started with the bowing. I wanted each stroke to start cleanly, with strong articulation, not fading up to full volume, not
sounding before the intended beginning. I worked on several different tunes or tune fragments, concentrating on and
listening to the articulation, and little by little came closer to
the sound I wanted.
Two observations:
• Applying definite, forceful bow pressure at the start
of a stroke, then continuing the stroke more lightly,
requires dexterity with the wrist and fingers. Holding
the bow too tightly or keeping your wrist and fingers
stiff works against this goal.
• It doesn’t hurt to be really emphatic at the start of a
stroke. The listener a few feet away from your instrument doesn’t hear the same subtleties you do.
Then there were the fingering/timing/coordination
problems. All can be described as “not enough time to get
to the next note.” There was only one thing to do.
I took problem phrases and played them, consciously
and deliberately, at slow tempo. The cure for not having
enough time is to make more time. Playing slowly gives you
more time. With practice, I was able to find the keys more
dependably and precisely, play more smoothly, reduce wasted
motion. And then I could keep these new skills and habits as
I raised the tempo.
I finally recorded the tune that prompted this column.
It wasn’t perfect, but it was a whole lot better than the first
attempt. And it’s even better now.
Advice for you
Once you’ve chosen a tune or two, listened to your
playing, and discovered some dimensions you’d like to
improve, here are some ways to organize the exercise:
• Bowing. Find tunes or phrases that illuminate bowing
problems, and focus only on the bowing. Be aware of
the hand and arm motions you’re using. Don’t be afraid
to be too emphatic on the attack or too light on the
stroke: as you explore the range of possibilities, you’ll
find the right intensity, the right lightness. Experiment
with the distance of the bow from the bridge, and
remember that the different strings require different
amounts of bow pressure.
7
• Tempo. When you practice, play the tunes intentionally slowly. Play at the speed you select, not “as fast as
your technique will allow.” It’s important to play cleanly
and precisely; playing quickly will come later. Use a
metronome if that helps.
• Fingering. Play tunes, but work specifically on those
phrases that cause trouble. Find fingerings and motions
that work, and practice them until they’re second
nature. Take other tunes with similar phrases and practice them as well, so that the skills you’re developing
aren’t associated only with one particular tune. And
don’t play faster than your fingers will move.
• The target. Listen occasionally to the CDs or workshop recordings of the tunes you’re practicing, to
refresh your notion of what you’re trying to achieve.
You don’t need to record yourself while you’re practicing this way: the initial round of recording and listening
alerted you to what you need to work on, and you can
probably hear what you need to as you play. But it can be
helpful to record now and then along the way, as a check on
what you’re hearing. And it can be rewarding, as you notice
that your playing is improving.
A tune to work on
One good tune is a polska efter Byss-Kalle, #25 in
57 låtar efter Byss-Kalle. (It appears on the following page)
It’s widely known and played, and it’s recorded, with minor
differences, on Peter Hedlund’s newest CD, Resonans. It
offers many opportunities for checking and improving one’s
playing, for example:
• Each note should start definitely and cleanly
• The first beat of each measure should be accented, the
second and third less so, so that the even slängpolska
rhythm comes through clearly
• The figures with four sixteenth-notes are best bowed
as shown, and the two slurred notes should divide the
time equally (or the first note can be slightly longer)
• The string crossings in measures 4 and 5 should be
clean and not upset the rhythm
• The fingering you use for measures 4 and 5 should let
you play smoothly and unhurriedly
Phrasing
Measures 4 and 5 have a long, unbroken string of sixteenth-notes; measures 8 and 9 almost as many. I like to play
these “conversationally,” with places to “breathe,” as if one
were speaking a sentence that has many words. I think this
is a good analogy, and so I’ve taken the liberty of equipping
these two segments with text that matches the phrasing I
use. I play it with a breathing space after “apples,” and one
after “orange.” You are free to substitute words of your own
choice.
.
A final word
I’m a good listener, and I have learned a lot by listening
carefully to the many good players I’ve heard in person or
on recordings. This time I listened to my own playing, for a
change, and learned a lot from the experience. Perhaps your
own playing holds something of interest as well. ■
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NYCKEL NOTES
Polska #25 efter Byss-Kalle
Transcription by Matt Fichtenbaum
Summer in Boston. The accordion player in this gondola has got the coolest summer job ever! Can anyone guess the identity of the
young lady from Berklee School of Music who is, in reality, primarily a nyckelharpa player at heart? (Answer on last page)
8
F ALL 2007
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9
An Interview With
Markus Svensson
by Matt Fichtenbaum
photos by Matt Fichtenbaum
M
arkus Svensson came to this year’s Nordic Fiddles
and Feet Scandinavian music and dance week, held
at Buffalo Gap Camp in West Virginia, to teach
nyckelharpa and to play for dancers. Your correspondent
shared a free hour with him to hear about his background
and his interests and to capture some of the wisdom behind
his teaching.
Early in the week, during the presentation of the camp
teaching staff, Markus recounted the start of his nyckelharpa
career.
I was eleven years old. I had played violin in school, classical music, but it didn’t hold much interest for me. And I had
no use for folk music—it was uninteresting and silly. But my
parents were very interested in folk music, so the whole family was going to a festival in Denmark, and I had to go with
them.
We took a bus from Vänersborg, at the southern tip of
Lake Vänern, where we lived. And on that bus was a whole
nyckelharpa spelmanslag, Lilla Edet Spelmanslag. Some of the
members were boys sixteen or seventeen years old, and I really
thought they were cool. I asked my parents if I could have a
nyckelharpa, and my father arranged for one. At that time I
didn’t know anything about nyckelharpa music, but I sat and
watched television, and played along with the music on the
children’s programs.
Markus began playing nyckelharpa in 1985. Living
outside of Uppland, he didn’t hear much traditional harpa
music, but he played most everything else.
I experimented with everything—Paganini, Charlie
Parker, a broad spectrum of folk music. Then in 1989 I
heard a recording that Esbjörn Hogmark had made of Eric
Sahlström, and everything fell into place. This was the way the
instrument should be used!
He continued his musical education in the folk music
program at the Music Academy in Stockholm, and he spent
a year at Malungs Folkhögskola, in Jonny Soling’s fiddle
course. Markus has put a lot of thought into the possibilities, choices, ranges of expression one has available when
one plays music, and credits Jonny as an inspiration in that
regard.
Today, Markus lives on Gotland and holds a half-time
position as a music teacher at the Folkhögskola there. The rest
of his time he works as a free-lance musician.
I’ve done some work with theatrical music. A production with the Orion theater in Stockholm, several shows at
Västanåteatern in Värmland with Leif Stinnerbom, and in
Skåne with Mats Edén. And a tour in Norway with Norske
Riksteatern.
He has played with various groups, including Kalabra
and Trio Patrekatt, but these days the only defined group I play
Markus explains the polska rhythm family tree and its geographical distribution over Sweden
with is the Nyckelharpa Orchestra, and we don’t play together
that often, maybe just once a year.
When Olle Paulsson started the CD project, Till Eric, the
six of us who are now the Nyckelharpa Orchestra hadn’t played
together much at all. But we’d all heard the same recordings
with Eric Sahlström, so our ideas weren’t that far apart. For
the arrangements, we set out to be very democratic – we’d all
agree on the parts, the harmonies, and all that. We got through
the first couple of tunes that way, but then it was more expedient to say “We’ll do this one Olov’s way, and that one Anders’
way...”
Tell me about your life as a music teacher.
The folkhögskola is a great place. The students are adults
who are there because they choose to be, so they’re very motivated. There’s no formal study plan, instead, the students and
the teacher together set the goals and plan the approaches, so the
students are very invested in the results.
What do you want your students to know?
Playing with a good tone, even from the beginning.
Playing beyond the “easy” nyckelharpa keys of C, F, and G, so
that you don’t restrict what you let yourself do with the instrument. Using the left hand freely rather than constraining it
into just a few positions and motions. And using the lower
strings, also from the beginning.
And listening. We spend some time listening to recordings, trying to describe what we’re hearing. In doing that, the
students not only hear what different players sound like but
explore and learn music’s different dimensions, all the possibilities for expression in one’s playing.
You took Jonny Soling’s course, which is primarily for
fiddlers. Do you also play fiddle?
I started on violin, and I still play, and I teach when
there’s a demand. My wife is a violin teacher at the same
school, so I only teach fiddle when I’m needed. I might teach
continued on next page ...
F ALL 2007
NYCKEL NOTES
the students who are not so advanced, or I might teach the very
advanced students. With them it’s more a question of the music
rather than the technique, so I can use nyckelharpa when I’m
teaching them.
What wisdom can you share about playing together in a
group? Sometimes people don’t seem to listen to each other
when they play.
First, it’s important that everyone knows the tune. If you
can play the tune easily, there’s time left over to listen to each
other and to think about creating music together. And eye contact between players is important, so it’s good to be able to play
without constantly watching your left hand.
Is it strange to come to the U.S. and teach, to find all
these people who are so interested in Swedish traditional
music and dance even though many don’t have it in their
heritage?
What I really notice is there seems to be a greater hunger
for the material, the knowledge here, as if you have discovered
something meaningful that isn’t so commonly available. It
makes it easy for me to be the teacher.
What do you think is important for us as students to
keep in mind?
The flow of the music, the drive, the phrasing. There’s
continuous motion. The last notes in a phrase are the pickup to
the next phrase. If you listen to classical music, it seems that a
phrase starts, grows, diminishes, comes to a stop. Then the next
phrase starts. But in folk music it never comes to a stop – one
phrase flows into the next, one starts while the previous one is
finishing. Playing it that way makes it music and not just a
series of notes.
Thank you, Markus! Are you staying in the U.S. for any
time after this week?
I’m going back Sunday night (camp runs through
Saturday). I have about a day in Washington, and I want to
10
visit some of the interesting sights and places in the area.
Professor Markus’s classes
We were a dozen or so students, ranging from newcomers who’d borrowed an instrument for the week to players of
long experience. There were two tracks, one more advanced,
one less, with some students participating in both. When
the week ended, all seemed to think the time had been well
spent. Markus is a very thoughtful player, very aware of the
elements that go into his playing. And although we were in
a class situation, I felt that he’d be a very good one-on-one
teacher, discerning in listening to the student’s playing and
articulate in presenting suggestions and corrections.
Markus grew up in Västergötland and now lives on
Gotland, so it’s not surprising that we learned tunes from
both provinces as well as elsewhere in Sweden (but no tunes
from Uppland!). Each tune taught offered a technical challenge or two, but Markus was there with the path to a solution.
Each day also featured its own “tip of the day.” Here is
some of what we learned.
• Explore what happens to the sound as you move the
bow closer to or farther away from the bridge. Try to
keep the bow perpendicular to the string.
• For good tone, the position of the bow relative to
the bridge, the bow pressure, and the bow speed are
all related. On any string, playing nearer the bridge
requires greater bow pressure and less bow speed; playing farther from the bridge needs lower pressure but
more speed. And different strings’ optimum pressure
and speed are different.
• The start of each bow stroke is critical. A note should
start definitely and cleanly. Too little bow pressure
gives a weak, skidding start; too much pressure gives a
scratchy start.
Markus had us place our bows on the
C melody string, then experiment to see,
using the bow, how far we could move it
(in the direction of the bow stroke) without making a sound. Ideally, one wants
to begin a stroke this way, then let up on
the bow pressure at the moment the bow
starts to move. This gives a strong, clean
start, then the lighter bow pressure keeps
the string sounding without draining its
energy.
Fiddler Vegar Vårdal and Markus playing for a floor full of delighted dancers
Vevlirepolska
This polska from Gotland was originally played on hurdy-gurdy (vevlira).
Markus plays some hurdy-gurdy, and there
were a couple of them at camp, so we got
to hear this tune on its original instrument
as well as on nyckelharpa. It’s a good tune,
not difficult to play in its basic form. One
can drone on the string below or above
the melody, and then there are fingering
challenges to solve. ■
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NYCKEL NOTES
Vevlirepolska efter Grodd-Olle
Vev
Fleringe, Gotland
Taught by Markus Svensson at Nordic Fiddle and Feet, 2007
The bowings are Matt’s and are only suggestions.
An mp3 file of Markus playing this tune is available at: http://www.nyckelharpa.org/noindex/nn_mp3.html
The Dream
The following came to us via the ANA website from Timna
Thür of Austria.
I was walking on fresh green grass in the woods, when
suddenly I heard some musicians playing. I followed the
wonderful folk-music and saw the musicians as they sat
together in the middle of the woods.
I sat and listened to them, talking and joking with them.
After some time, one of them went to his car and came back with a big, heavy suitcase. I wondered what
could be in there, so I got up to have a look. As he opened the case, there lay an instrument, beaming
brightly as if it was illumined from within.
This was a dream I had a few months ago. Since that night, I was always thinking about the instrument I dreamed about. Does it exist? ... or was it just a dream?
At a folk-festival last weekend I found out. A musician there played a nyckelharpa! I asked myself all
through the concert if this could be true. After the concert, I asked the musician about his instrument.
Now I look forward to being shown how to play and I’m happy to find out that there’s a whole organization for the nyckelharpa. ■
11
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12
Party Hearty!
Peter “Pu
“Puma” Turns Fifty
by Sheila Morris
The author test-drives one of Martin Westermark’s creations as
Martin watches.
camped out in the field next to the house. A fire-pit was
flaming away, ready for the two cooks to make the promised
kolbullar. A large group of musicians was playing nearby, a
smaller group was playing by the front door, and it looked
pretty much like a small spelmansstämma.
There were a couple of other Americans in the larger
group, Wes Peterson and Judy Kjenstad, so I went and
played for awhile, until the scent of frying bacon became
overwhelming. I put my harpa away and we joined the food
line, finding ourselves amidst a group of Irish musicians who
had met Puma on one of his trips to Ireland.
Chat around the large tables set up in the front yard was
carried on in both English and Swedish, freely mixed. Many
of the American and Irish guests spoke no Swedish, and
many of the local neighbors spoke no English, but everyone
seemed to be having a good time, regardless.
continued on next page ...
photos by Doug Oines
L
ars and I were already planning a trip to Sweden this
summer, so when Puma invited us (and about 900 of
his other friends) to his birthday party, it was easy to
say, “Yes!”
In Sweden, the 50th birthday is the biggie. People
you haven’t seen in years will get together and “surprise”
you—though it’s not usually much of a surprise. Puma hates
surprises, so he planned his own party months in advance.
As it was also midsommar
midsommar, one of the year’s biggest holidays
in Sweden, he wanted to be sure that people could plan it
into their schedules. As with any major holiday, most folks
have some sort of standard routine. I usually spend midsommar with friends in Södermanland when I’m in Sweden. I
was sorry to miss that gathering, but it happens every year.
Instead, we got to spend time together at the Österbybruk
stämma, and Puma won’t turn fifty again!
The party promised to be something special, with musicians coming from near and far. Each of the first one hundred or so to arrive
would be served a
kolbulle as well as a
beer. Not anything
we wanted to miss!
Kolbulle, literally,
“coal-ball,” but neither coal nor a ball,
rather, bits of bacon
or pork fried to crispiness, then stirred into
a thick pancake—
something lumberjacks
used to eat. Very filling!
Rita Leydon asked Doug Oines
The e-mailed
to take a commemorative picture
invitation said that the
of Peter in the fetching birthday
party would start at
wreath she made for her friend
13:00, but when we
from wild field flowers. Peter had
arrived about 13:15,
a lot of things on his mind so Rita
things were already
points his attention at the camera.
in full swing. Several
The classy hat was a gift.
people had arrived
the day before and
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NYCKEL NOTES
13
Kolbullar was the main item on the menu, served up alfresco by a couple of local experts. This was real stick to the ribs fare, favored
by skogsarbetare—those who worked in the woods, or lumberjacks.
Puma insisted good-naturedly that it was too contaminated
to be allowed to exist any longer.
Doug Oines and Rita Leydon were also there, and we
managed to play a few tunes together, though we never did
get everyone together for an ANA photo—probably my
fault, as we left fairly early. The weather wasn’t totally cooperative, and it was getting chilly standing around outside.
The Irish band was holding forth in the living room, others were playing in the kitchen, and the barn wasn’t much
warmer than the front yard. But there was time for plenty of
food, beer, and music before we left! ■
photos by Doug Oines
Every so often, new arrivals would show up, with presents—canes for the “old man” were popular, or flowers—it
was worth the trip just to see Puma wearing a wreath of
flowers!
I had a chance to “test-drive” a couple of Martin
Westermark’s harpas. It’s always interesting to play instruments by different builders. Lars even got to try Puma’s—he
found it lying on a table and thought it was the one I was
supposed to try. He later apologized to Puma. “Oh, well,
now it’s ruined. It’ll have to be destroyed!” was the reply.
Lars offered to buy the ‘ruined’ harpa for ten dollars, but
F ALL 2007
NYCKEL NOTES
14
Our friends, Elin Skoglund and Edward Anderzon—who
were here in the US with us earlier in the spring for the ANA
Stämma—were in full swing with their nyckelharpas at the
Ransäter Stämma in June.
The
Ransäter Stämma
by Richard Jones-Bamman
W
hile dwarfed by comparison to the huge folk
music gatherings held annually in Bingsjö and
Delsbo, and nowhere near as nyckelharpa-intensive as the gathering in Österbybruk, Ransäter’s stämma,
situated in Värmland is (as the organizers frequently remind
attendees) Sweden’s first major festival of the season, occurring each year on the first weekend of June.
As has been the case for several years now, this is a stämma that features both professional and amateur performances
in abundance, with several different stage venues, and plenty
of open space for the impromptu jam sessions that are the
raison d’être for many of those attending. The latter in particular provide ample opportunity for the exchange of repertoire, and the very likely possibility to rub musical elbows
with one’s heroes. In addition, jam sessions encourage musical inventiveness, as participants seek new ways of playing
old, familiar tunes that are the mainstay of all such festivals.
Where else is one likely to encounter a decidedly Anglo-Irish
approach to a bondpolska, or conversely an American fiddle
tune dressed up as a Swedish schottis?
schottis
The organizers of the Ransäter stämma, however, also
emphasize the formal exchange of information. There were,
for example, introductory courses available for aspiring singers and nyckelharpa players, taught by Gunnel Mauritzon
and Johan Hedin respectively. One of the most intriguing
presentations, though, was listed in the program as “An
Inspirational Meeting with Väsen.” This 90-minute encounter provided a glimpse into the creative process by which
the members of this renowned group have developed their
unique and influential sound. Focusing on music from the
time of Swedish naturalist Carl von Linné (whose tercentenary is currently being celebrated, and coincidentally is
the subject of Väsen’s most recent recording project), Olov
Johansson, Mikael Marin and Roger Tallroth took turns
explaining their roles, from the selection of a particular
tune, to the establishment of a harmonic structure that
should both enhance the melody, and provide it with musical momentum. Yet, perhaps the most valuable insight was
the simple fact that these three musicians primarily choose
and/or create melodies that are open to constant variation.
As guitarist Tallroth remarked, “Our recordings are merely
signposts along the path of development these tunes provide
for us.” Hence, in live performance new guitar riffs or counter melodies from the viola predictably emerge, propelling
the trio into the novel musical territory which has become a
hallmark of the band.
Interspersed throughout the three-day festival were
concerts, featuring artists ranging from the subtle (Erika och
Cecilia; Crane Dance Trio) to the wild (Faust; Outhouse
Allstars). With so many musical offerings, it was actually
difficult to decide which ones to see, especially since few
artists appeared more than once. But, it was the dancers
who dominated each night, with music provided by both
organized and completely impromptu groups. In this environment, perhaps more so than any other during the course
of the festival, the blending of generations was most evident,
with young and old crowding the dance floor. Here also
was proof of the continuity of Swedish folk music and folk
dance, as musicians and dancers spurred each other on, early
into the morning, repeating the tunes and retracing the steps
of their forebears, but also adding individual interpretations
that built upon those same traditions. And this, one presumes, is the real diving force behind the Ransäter stämma
(and similar events throughout Scandinavia): the acknowledgement of the past, along side a celebration of the present, the combination of which guarantees a healthy future
for traditional music and dance. ■
For information on the 2008 Ransäter stämma:
www.ransatersstamman.nu
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NYCKEL NOTES
The
Stämma at
Österbybruk
by Doug Oines
T
he 2007 nyckelharpastämma in Österby—how did I
end up there? Just four years ago, I had never heard
of a nyckelharpa. Since then, I have purchased two
instruments, attended the Norrbo, Delsbo, Mora and
Bingsjö stämmas, hosted a stämma in the United States and
met many wonderful people in the nyckelharpa community.
Now, I was at the largest, most important nyckelharpa gathering in the world, ready to play with anyone who would
play with me. How did all this happen?
On Labor Day weekend in September 2003, because of
my Norwegian roots, I took my family to the Scandinavian
Fest in New Jersey. At the festival, we were walking by the
display booths and saw a guy—Peter Hedlund—playing a
very intriguing stringed instrument. The sounds I heard
were different than anything I had heard before. Within
minutes, I had fallen in love. When I got home that evening,
I started my research without even knowing how to spell
“nyckelharpa.”
Within six months I had purchased a starter instrument
on eBay for $500 and discovered that there were other
players living in my immediate area. Chris and Rita Leydon
guided me through getting to know my instrument and
beginning to learn how to play it. Besides being able to now
count Rita and Chris as good friends, I also got the chance
to know Peter Hedlund and develop a good friendship with
him.
The summer of 2006, my wife Gail and I joined Tim
Rued for his Sweden Folk Tour. We attended four stämmas
and met and played with some of the most prominent players in the world. What an experience! While there, I purchased a new harpa made by Martin Westermark. We visited
Österbybruk, but it was several weeks after the 2006 nyckelharpastämma, so I could only imagine what that experience
was like. I made it a goal to someday attend, not expecting
to be able to get back to Sweden for several years.
In 2007, several factors collided that gave me the
opportunity to attend Österby the weekend before
midsommar. My daughter, Michele, announced that she was
engaged, and was going to be married in November. I felt
15
compelled to find an opportunity for a father/daughter trip
to spend some quality time together prior to her entering
the new phase of her life. About the same time, I received
an invitation from Peter Hedlund to join him for his birthday celebration on June 23rd. I figured that this must all
be a sign from above, so a trip to Sweden was planned with
my daughter to tour central/northern Sweden, attend the
Österbybruk stämma and to celebrate Peter’s birthday with
him. I couldn’t imagine a better trip than that!
We arrived at Österbybruk the morning of June 16th,
and immediately began to run into people that we had met
during last year’s Sweden Folk Tour—it was great to see
them again. We also found several nyckelharpa enthusiasts
from the United States there. These included: John Wendell
from Hawaii (who was on our flight from Philadelphia),
Shelia Morris from Colorado, Richard Jones-Bamman
from Connecticut, Wes Peterson from Minnesota and Kate
Kramer from California.
That afternoon, the buskspel sessions began to pop up
through-out the grounds. It was fun to go from group to
group and play a few tunes. This was followed by the youth
performances on the stage in herrgårdsparken that were
being judged. The afternoon concluded with an excellent
concert by the students from the Eric Sahlström Institute.
In the evening the celebration continued with various dance
sessions.
The following day, Sunday, was cloudy and threatening
rain through-out the day. We began the day by attending
the church service, with the music provided by the Österby
Spelmän. (I am trying to convince the pastor of my home
church that all the music should be played on nyckelharpa.)
After the service we went over and looked at the fifty or so
instruments that were on display after having been judged.
I wish I had the opportunity to play all of them, to get a
better understanding of how different instruments sound.
The rainy conditions caused the spelman’s march to be
cancelled, which was disappointing; I was really looking
forward to participating in that. The allspel and the afternoon performances were moved indoors, which was very
crowded, but didn’t damper the event at all. We were fortunate to get seats the in the front row and had a great view of
everything. Esbjörn and Sture Hogmark led the allspel with
great vigor and enthusiasm. For me, the highlights of the
afternoon were performances by members of the Sahlström
family and by Hasse Gille’s
Oldtimers. The day concluded with a final concert
in the church.
The Österbybruk
experience exceeded my
expectations. It was a
fabulous time—a time of
great music, fellowship and
learning. In the U.S. we
don’t get many opportunities for total immersion in
Swedish folk and nyckelharpa music —this was the
ultimate experience! ■
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NYCKEL NOTES
Building Competition
by Rita Leydon
he annual stämma at Österbybruk is well known to
most nyckelharpa players, even here in the US. But
what may not be so well known is that there is also a
competition every year for harpa builders with a several day
long symposium just prior to the stämma. All the major and
not so major makers gather and share knowledge and education together for the sake of the furtherance of the art. We
all benefit tremendously from this.
This summer, my friend Sören Åhker was very excited
and proud to be selected the winner in his class. Sören has
brought home top honors before and also placed 2nd or 3rd
many times during the ten or so years that he has entered
the competition. I had the chance to play this magnificent
instrument in a jam session at Puma’s party, and can testify
that it is an extraordinary instrument. I asked Sören to tell
us a bit about the competition:
“They did it a bit differently this year. Three harpas
were selected, each representing an entirely different type
of sound. One had a sound very similar to Eric Sahlström’s
harpas. Another had a sound very much like the older gammelharpas. Esbjörn Hogmark, one of the judges who also
presented the awards, said about my harpa: ‘Sören’s nyckelharpas represent a sound which has a deep, dark, rich and
powerfully resonating tone which is very even over the full
range. All his harpas sound like this. They are exceptionally
well built and beautiful.’ Esbjörn then played each of the
instruments for the audience. Normally the winner is asked
to come up of the stage to say a few words, but not this
year.” ■
T
exhibit photos by Doug Oines
ABOVE: Sören shows off his winning harpa.
BELOW: Exhibit of nyckelharpas at the Österby
16
ANA Board
ELECTION
NOTICE:
T
he Elections for ANA Board
of Directors will be held in
December. Two of the five
current directors have terms ending
this year so we will be electing two
members for a two year term on the
Board. If you are interested in serving as a director please contact the
Secretary of the ANA, Karen Myers.
e-mail: [email protected]
Karen Myers
17345 Raven Rocks Road
Bluemont, VA 20135
Please provide a brief biography
and statement of what you would
like to bring to the Board. You may
also nominate others, but please
make sure they are willing to serve
before doing so! The next issue of
Nyckel Notes will contain a ballot.
You will be able to vote either online
or with a paper ballot and instructions for doing so will be provided
in the next issue.
stämma.
Annual Dues! Please check your
current membership status on the
ANA website. If the date after your
name is 2007.3 or earlier, then it is
time to pay your dues. ■
NYCKEL NOTES
F ALL 2007
String Bazaar
The ANA is pleased to offer
nyckelharpa strings for sale!
We have playing strings and three
versions of understring sets.
Order Form
Prices listed are for ANA members/non-members.
Price includes shipping to a US address.
Playing strings:
Prim Full Set
Qty
Price
Cost
$67/$75
$
Prim A (1)
$18/$20
$
Prim C (2)
$14/$16
$
Prim G (3)
$16/$18
$
Prim C (4)
$19/$21
$
6+6 resonance set
$22/$27
$
4+4+4 resonance set
$22/$27
$
12-step resonance se
$22/$27
$
Total:
$
Resonance strings:
Name
Street
City
State
Zip
Phone
17
P
rim brown strings for the C (2) and G (3) strings
are still in stock. They are labeled “orchestra”
and are the hardest of the three flavors of Prim
strings, in theory giving a nyckelharpa with timid central
melody string sound more get-up and go.
Prim blue strings, which are labeled “soft tone” are
also still available. These help tone down harpas with
A (1) strings that tend to overwhelm the other melody
strings. The blues are available for the A (1), G (3) and
C (4) strings.
The standard Prim greens are well-stocked in the
A(1) and C(4) gauges, but the others are in low supply
and will be hopefully coming in soon.
Paying online using PayPal is most efficient, though
checks (made out to the ANA and sent to me) are also
fine..
If you’ve been concerned with your nyckelharpa’s
evenness of sound, now is a great time to experiment
with the blue and brown strings while the supplies last!
—Tim Newcomb
Playing Strings
The playing strings are the four largest strings, the
ones that you actually touch with the bow. PRIM brand
strings are made by an old Swedish string manufacturing company. Their fiddle strings are popular among
folk musicians, and are available widely in the US.
Their nyckelharpa strings are basically the same as their
cello strings, except that they are the correct length for
nyckelharpas instead of about a foot too long. All four
strings are wound. The A-string is .020” (0.50 mm) in
diameter.
Sympathetic Strings
E-mail
e-mail for inquiries: [email protected]
Send this form along with a check payable to
American Nyckelharpa Association to:
Tim Newcomb
P.O. Box 51, Montpelier, VT 05602
We offer three versions of understrings, described
more fully in the January 1998 edition of Nyckel Notes.
Basically, the three sets can be called 6+6, 4+4+4, and
12-step. There’s actually some logic here:
6+6 is
• 6 wound strings .021” (0.53 mm) in diameter
• 6 plain strings .014” (0.36 mm) in diameter
4+4+4 is
• 4 wound strings 0.24” (0.61 mm) in diameter
• 4 wound strings .021” (0.53 mm) in diameter
• 4 plain strings .014” (0.36 mm) in diameter
12-step is
• 12 strings, varying from .025” (0.64 mm) to .014”
(0.36 mm), by steps of .001”. The lower 6 are
wound, the higher 6 are plain.
F ALL 2007
NYCKEL NOTES
18
The American Nyckelharpa Association
The ANA is a non-profit organization dedicated to
fostering the nyckelharpa and its music in North
America. We sponsor and produce music workshops
across the country featuring the traditions of the nyckelharpa.
ANA Membership dues are $10 per year, which
includes a digital subscription to this newsletter. Send
to the address below, and please indicate if you play the
nyckelharpa and if we can publish your name in our
roster.
www.nyckelharpa.org
Source of information about the nyckelharpa,
nyckelharpa players, a history of the instrument,
nyckelharpa events and more!
Nyckel Notes
Published quarterly. Send submissions to Nyckel Notes at
the address below, or to: [email protected]
The ANA’s Nyckel Notes
c/o Rita Leydon
PO Box 127, Lahaska, PA 18931
It’s mid-August here and blistering hot outside. In the garden, the corn cobs are bursting
out of their husks and my
resident ground hog is outsmarting me at every turn. I’ve
almost learned to like him as I
find his beady eyes staring back
at me from under his cover of
zucchini leaves. I suspect the
lesson is that you just can’t
control everything.
Big changes are afoot at our house this season
and causing some welcome and expected topsy turvy. I
knew in the spring already that my usual summer trip
to Sweden would be scratched. No Ekebyholm. No
Österby stämma. No Iste. Peter Puma Hedlund had
invited Chris and me to his 50 birthday bash last year
already and I sadly told him we just couldn’t. Sorry. As
midsummer drew closer and closer I got to noticing a
peculiar feeling of agony and angst that I wasn’t going
to be in Iste with my good friends on that special
occasion. This is for the birds, I thought one day, and
arranged for a last minute ticket for a very short outand-return trip to the place where my heart obviously
wanted to be. Chris said, “Just do it!” So I did it. Peter
didn’t know. I didn’t tell him.
Besides the flight and the rental car, I had to
arrange to sleep somewhere for two nights, and thankfully, my good buddies Martin Westermark and Sören
Åhker—the nyckelharpa builders—generously offered
me space in the camper they were sharing which would
be conveniently parked in Peter’s front pasture. After
all, there is the party itself, and then there is the preparty party and also the post-party party. Martin and
Sören were duly sworn to tight lipped secrecy. With
all the details spiffily arranged, I winged my way to
Sweden with just a toothbrush in tow.
What an adventure I had! Peter was absolutely
stunned to see me and squeezed the air out of me
pretty good as did his wife Karin. I had a wonderful,
wonderful time for three whole days and even had the
honor and joy of making a beautiful birthday garland
for my friend, once again, just as I’ve done for a whole
bunch of years now it seems. Everything felt so very
right. Then ... all too soon, the clock stuck midnight,
and, in the blink of an eye, Cinderella was back at
home in her garden sharing plump veggies with a fat,
beady eyed ground hog.
I really hope your summer was as wonderful as
mine!
—Rita Leydon
Editor
The accordion player on page 8 is none other than Bronwyn Bird.
Rita’s Notes: